Any suggestions on cloudy aquarium?

Question

I recently set up a 10 gallon freshwater tank for my son. I used non chlorinated water and let the tank run 36 hours before purchasing fish for the tank. I tested the PH, which was fine prior to adding fish. I purchased 3 Columbian Sharks, which all died within 24 hrs. I tested the tank again for PH levels and also tested for ammonia, which was negative. I then purchased different varities of "Barbs", which seem to be doing ok but the water is now cloudy.

Answer 1

Cloudy water is an indication of some type of pollutant. In all likelihood, the cause is too many fish. To determine your problem I need more information. With a 10-gallon tank, three fish this soon is an overload. You should start with just ONE fish and allow the water in your tank to cycle through once before adding another fish. To determine if your tank is cycling you need to take various water readings with your test kit over a period of a few days. You should see the ammonia levels spike and then taper down to an acceptable level. Once that happens, the bacteria base in the tank has developed the capability of handling the waste produced by the current tank population. “Bio-load” is the term used to describe the total biological specimens in your tank. With such a small system, you must add only one fish at a time and wait for the tank to cycle again. You know you can add no more fish once the ammonia level begins the creep towards unacceptable levels.

Other factors include the type of filtration and the type of lighting that you use. If you use an over-the-back (OTB) filtration system, you may have a few more fish than if you use the foam pad with a tube that connects to an air pump. In fact, the foam pad with air pump filtration system is the most inefficient filtration available. An OTB filter may cost more than you spent on the tank, but it is a worthwhile investment.

Lighting is a common source of pollution in the home aquarium. If you use incandescent bulbs, the color spectrum cast creates great conditions for algae growth. Using some type of fluorescent lighting system will greatly reduce the growth rate of algae. Green-slime-algae sucks oxygen from the water and that suffocates the fish. Leaving any type of light system on too long is bad for the tank and bad for the fish.

Keep in mind that a hobby aquarium creates an artificial eco-system for your fish. Every aspect of the tank interacts with the other components of the system. Keeping the water too hot causes problems as warmer water holds less oxygen. Not keeping the temperature warm enough can cause stress on the fish and lead to ich, which shows as small white spots on the fish. Other maladies that improper water conditions may cause include fin rot and other skin conditions on the fish.

I suggest that you remove 30% of the water in the tank and replace it with fresh de-chlorinated water. Make sure you add the water at the same temperature as the water in the tank. Other items that help keep a healthy aquarium are live plants. You must be careful to choose plants that are safe for your type of fish. Also, make sure to acclimate the plants just as you do new fish before adding them to the tank.

24-hours after the partial water change if your tank is still cloudy do another 30% change. 24-hours after that, take a water sample into your local fish store to have them test it for you. Some test kits go bad sitting on the shelf.

Good luck!

Will D
Enterprise AL
http://www.notagz.com

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Karen I tried to respond to your email but received an error message saying your email address has not been confirmed... here is my response...

The plants could cause problems with your tank. Just like any other biological that you add to the tank, the system needs time to adjust to the changes. I believe your test kit may be reading the ammonia levels incorrectly. Usually cloudy water and a fishy smell indicate very high ammonia content. Do the partial water changes for the next couple of days and hope that cures the problem. You may want to keep some prepared water on hand to make the changes easier. If you go to your local pet store, pick up a little sea salt to add to your tank. Just a little pinch is all you need. This adds some calcium and other nutrients, which help with cycling the tank. The nutrients also help the fish with any skin conditions that may arise. Just a pinch once every 4 to 6 weeks is sufficient. You can also get a product to help absorb excess ammonia from your tank.

By the way, pH is not the only gauge for good water conditions. Some fish require high pH levels and some require very low levels. You need to know what your fish require. Check out http://www.liveaquaria.com/ and find their freshwater fish charts to help you figure out the water parameters needed by your fish.

If the fish you have now do not make it, change 80% of the water, leave the plants in the tank, and let it run for a couple of weeks before trying fish again. Add one fish at a time then wait a week to add one more.

Email me directly at [e-mail] to make corresponding easier.

Answer 2

What type of filtration is on the tank? How many fish are in the tank? How often are you feeding? Did you rinse the gravel? Is the take a milky white or green color? These are a few questions I always ask customers when they come to me with this question. Are you familar with the nitrification cycle? This the process of getting good bacteria in your tank by using hardy fish, feeding them and letting their waste turn into benefical bacteria to break down waste. This cycle will take 4 to 6 weeks to complete. I would recommend feeding the fish once a day, running the light 6 to 8 hours max a day. Barbs are a great fish to start out with and then after you have gone 4 to 6 weeks with these fish have your local pet store test your water to make sure that your ammonia and nitrites are good. The ammonia cycle in a new tank will last about 2 weeks and then that ammonia will turn to nitrite that will last at least 4 more weeks. I have been in this hobby for at least 15 years and have been working in it for 10 years.

Answer 3

A newly set up tank with so many fish is going to look milky because of ammonia from the fish waste, Make sure the test kit is an acurrate one and you have followed all the direction corectly . Tetra do a good test kit with three liquids which I find the most accurate.Get some nitrifying bacteria from your aquatic shop and add this to the tank every day. King British Safe Water is a good one. The cloudyness will gradually dissapear as the tank matures.
This is called setting up the nitrogen cycle and care sheets on how this works are available on my website for free.

Answer 4

Don't fret about the ph and all that stuff do a water change and then throw a handfull of coarse sea salt into the tank, and make sure your aeration if rathe fast as to work all the gunk through your filters. My dear I think you must get yourself a heater, it could be that the water is too cold for the fish. The heaters are normally preset so don't go setting on the heater if you don't have a heater that could also be the cause of the water being merky, before buying any more fish get the heater, but before you put the heater in and yopu do a water change the water must be replaced with warm water, so that the heater when switched on will not have to pull too much electricity

Answer 5

Take the water to a good fish store. They can do a more thorough test for you. It could be a nitrate/nitrate issue. It could be something else in the water.

Make sure you rinsed any new items (gravel, filter, etc) well before setting the tank up. Fish are very sensitive to toxic chemicals. If this was for example used gravel, there could be something bad in it that's causing your water to turn cloudy.

Do watch your temperature a few times over the next few days. A malfunctioning heater could cause big shifts in water temp, killing the fish.

When you add fish, let the bag float in the tank for about 10 mins. You don't want to shock them with an extreme change in temps.

Also try buying your fish somewhere else. Some places just have really weak, crummy fish.

Answer 6

If your filter is not strong enofe, that may be one reason, because all the ammonia is not being sucked out. Or, if you have too many fish, that could be a problem too. Each fish should have 1gallon of water for every 1/2inch of there body. Also, treat your water with water conditioners. Make shure your gravle is rinsed well. If any decaying plants or uneaten food is left there, bacterial blooms will occur making the water cloudy. Make shure you dont overfeed your fish, and use fish food guarenteed not to cloud the water. Here is a website on cloudy and green water: http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/waterconditions/a/cloudywater.htm good luck:)

Answer 7

The cloudiness is from a bloom of bacteria - necessary for breaking down fish waste. It will clear up soon enough, but you need to keep an eye on the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate while the bacterial cycle is building up. Any increase in them will leave your new fish (already stressed from being moved) in a weaker condition leaving them open for sickness and death. I would suggest adding one level teaspoon of aquarium salt for freshwater fish for every 5 gallons of water. It will not affect the build up of a bacterial cycle, but will help protect your fish from ich, fin rot, and other problems.

Answer 8

you should first change the water, and then get one of these "water cleaners" - it's some sort of filter, you just put it in and it keeps the water clean, there is also another device - it somehow keeps the water oxygenated, so that your fish don't die of suffocation ....

when you change the water, you also have to remember 2 things - first, also clean the pebbles if you have any, and secondly, before you put you fish back in, be sure the temperature is just as before, or else they could die (sort of heart attack - mine almost did :( ...

oh, and another thing - there are some fish, they can also help keeping your aquarium clean, they stick to the glass and keep it clean, can't remember what they're called ....

I just remembered - your fish could have died because of the temperature - there are very few fish that are OK with water at room temperature, most of them, especially more exotic ones, need a heater to keep the water at the right temperature ...

Answer 9

ya .. its the cycle system immature so tat its become cloudy.. if you have fren or relatives who have a mature tank (at least 3 months) , borrow a sponge from the filter, put it in ur tank, within 3 - 5 days, ur tank will get clean. this is the easier and faster way for me :-P

tat is because the old sponge got bacteria and they can grow fast like this. or you also can go and buy the bacteria from the fish shop, but need more time to grow in ur tank..

Answer 10

Don't put fish in it. The tank will take 30 days to "cycle" and in that time the bacteria needed to breakdown fish waste will establish themselves. You don't have to add jack to the water. Never do a total water change as you'll be back to square one again

Source: Have had tanks for forty + years